Iocono Appointed Chief of Pediatric Surgery at Kentucky Children's Hospital

Media Contact: Mary Colliver

LEXINGTON, Ky. (June 15, 2010) − Dr. Joseph A. Iocono, pediatric surgeon, has been appointed chief of the division of pediatric surgery for Kentucky Children's Hospital. Iocono is an associate professor of surgery in the University of Kentucky College of Medicine. He also is director of the pediatric trauma program and associate director of the Minimally Invasive Surgery (MIS) Center for UK HealthCare.

Iocono succeeds Dr. Andrew R. Pulito, professor of surgery, UK College of Medicine, and a longtime pediatric surgeon for UK HealthCare and Kentucky Children's Hospital. Pulito will remain an active member of the pediatric surgery team and serve as division chief emeritus.

"Joe is a tireless physician whose passion toward the care of children and education of students is infectious," said Dr. Joseph "Jay" B. Zwischenberger, Johnston-Wright Professor and chair of surgery, UK College of Medicine, and a surgeon for UK HealthCare. “Joe is a role model and inspiration to us all."

Iocono has been at UK since 2003. His clinical interests include minimally invasive surgery in infants and children, neonatal and congenital anomalies, oncology (cancer surgery), and trauma. He also directs the third year clerkship in general surgery and his research interest is how to use low cost simulation to improve surgical skills.

He received his medical degree from Jefferson Medical College, Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia, Pa.; completed his residency at the Milton S. Hershey Medical Center in Hershey, Pa.; and completed his fellowship at St. Christopher's Hospital for Children in Philadelphia, Pa.

"Our pediatric surgeons are focused upon superior results from high-quality, safe and emotionally supportive surgical care for Kentucky babies and young people," said Dr. Tim Bricker, Jacqueline A. Noonan, M.D., Children's Miracle Network Endowed Professor and chair, Department of Pediatrics at the UK College of Medicine, and physician-in-chief of Kentucky Children's Hospital. "Dr. Iocono has long been on the forefront of minimally invasive surgery nationally. He is not only an outstanding surgeon technically with a tenderness that reassures children, but he is also an innovator and an outstanding leader. Kentucky families are served very well by this remarkable team. All staff at Kentucky Children’s Hospital feel great pride in the announcement of Dr. Iocono’s appointment as chief of the division of pediatric surgery."

"It is an honor to be named division chief of pediatric surgery," said Iocono. "I am extremely grateful to Drs. Pulito and Zwischenberger and Dr. Michael Karpf, UK executive vice president for health affairs, for this opportunity. My goal is to continue to help Kentucky Children's Hospital grow into a major referral center for pediatric surgery."

Kentucky Children's Hospital is the region’s only Level I Trauma Center for children and the only hospital in the region to perform minimally invasive surgery on neonates and children. Over the past four years, the pediatric surgery division has almost doubled the number of surgeries performed to more than 1,500 per year.

The division will welcome its fourth surgeon, Dr. John Draus, in August to join Drs. Iocono, Pulito, Dr. Sean Skinner, and Kara Cole, physician's assistant. In addition, fellowship trained pediatric specialists in congenital heart surgery, anesthesia, urology, orthopaedics, neurosurgery, otolaryngology or ENT, ophthalmology and plastic surgery are all in place to serve any child’s surgical needs with a specialist for at Kentucky Children's Hospital.